Addanc
British, Celtic, and Welsh mythology all tell of aqueous demons called Addanc (also known as Afanc). Said to look like a beaver-, crocodile-, or dwarflike demon, it preys upon those who enter into the lake it lives in. Folklore tells us that it once lived in Llyn Barfog and/or in Llyn Llion Lake near Brynberian Bridge or in Llyn yr Afanc Lake. It can be lured out of the water by a maiden, and when this happens, the addanc is powerless. There are various stories regarding the addanc's destruction. Some tell how Hu Gadarn used oxen to drag it out of the water and slay it; other tales say it was lured out of the water where it fell asleep on her lap, was bound up in chains, and then either dragged off to Lake Cwm Ffynnon or slain by Peredur. According to Llyfr Coch Hergest (Red Book of Hergest), written between 1382 and 1410, and Llyfr Gwyn Rhydderch (White Book of Rhydderch), written in 1350, the trashing of the addanc had once caused massive flooding, which drowned all the original inhabitants of Britain except for Dwyfan and Dwyfach, who went on to found a new race of Britons. Legends and traditions The afanc was a monstrous creature that, like most lake monsters, was said to prey upon any foolish enough to fall into or swim in its lake. One of the earliest descriptions of it is given by the 15th century poet Lewys Glyn Cothi, who described it as living in Llyn Syfaddon or Llangorse Lake, now in Powys. One tale relates that it was rendered helpless by a maiden who let it sleep upon her lap; while it slept, the maiden's fellow villagers bound the creature in chains. The creature was awakened and made furious; its enraged thrashings crushed the maiden, in whose lap it still lay. It was finally dragged away to the lake Cwm Ffynnon, or killed by Peredur (Percival, Peredur's name in Chrétien de Troyes' telling of the Arthurian legends). In the tale, Peredur son of Efrawg, translated by Lady Charlotte Guest in the Mabinogion taken from the White Book of Rhydderch and Red Book of Hergest, the 'Addanc of the Lake' resides in a cave near the 'Palace of the Sons of the King of the Tortures'. The Palace is so named as the Addanc slays the three sons (chieftains) of the king each day, only for them to be resurrected by the maidens of the court. It is not stated why this cycle of violence continues, but when Peredur asks to ride with the three chieftains, who seek out the Addanc daily, they state that they will not accept his company as if he was slain they would not be able to bring him back to life. Peredur continues to the cave on his own, wishing to kill the creature to increase his fame and honour. On his journey he meets a maiden who states that the Addanc will slay Peredur through cunning, as the beast is invisible and kills his victims with poison darts. The maiden, actually the Queen of Constantinople, gives Peredur a seeing stone, which will make the creature visible. Peredur ventures into the cave and with the aid of the stone, pierces the Addanc before beheading it. When the three chieftains arrive at the cave they state that it was predicted that Peredur would kill the Addanc. Some legends ascribe the creature's death to King Arthur. Close to Llyn Barfog in Snowdonia is a hoof-print petrosomatoglyph etched deep into the rock "Carn March Arthur", or the "Stone of Arthur's Horse", which was supposedly made by King Arthur's mount, Llamrai, when it was hauling the afanc from the lake. Iolo Morganwg According to a version of an afanc legend as put forth by the famous writer of myths and folklore Iolo Morganwg, its thrashings caused massive flooding which ultimately drowned all inhabitants of Britain save for two people, Dwyfan and Dwyfach, from whom the later inhabitants of Prydain descended. According to one version of the myth, also put forth by Iolo Morgannwg, Hu Gadarn's oxen dragged the afanc out of the lake; once it was out of the water, it was powerless and could be killed. This version locates the creature in Llyn Llion. Orthography The correct rendering of this name in Modern Welsh depends on the specific source. The Middle Welsh avanc of Llyn Barfog is afanc in Modern Welsh, a word which is now used to mean "Beaver". The form avanc/afanc is also used in the Red Book of Hergest and most other medieval sources. In the Middle Welsh version of Peredur's tale, in the White Book of Rhydderch, the creature in the cave is called the addanc. Afanc is by far the most common spelling. Literature In the story "Matheson's Inheritance" by A.F. Kidd, which is based on William Hope Hodgson's ghost-finding character Thomas Carnacki, a supernatural manifestation appears in a Welsh castle that the locals attribute to an afanc, which, in the story, Mr. Carnacki describes as "a sort of horse-headed monster which is supposed to haunt lakes in Wales." In the Dark Is Rising series by Susan Cooper, an afanc appears in the final book of the series, Silver On The Tree. In the novel The Scar by China Miéville, an afanc (spelled "avanc" in the book) is summoned and harnessed to tow the floating city Armada. In the novel Ashes of Honor by Seanan McGuire, an afanc appears in modern-day San Francisco. Afancs are described as "fae monsters...live in lakes and marshes and are reasonably harmless, as long as you don't startle them and get yourself drowned." Category:Demons Category:Aqueous Devils Category:European demons